The nullification crisis was a conflict between the U.S. state of South Carolina and the federal government of the United States in 1832–33. It was driven by South Carolina politician John C. Calhoun, who opposed the federal imposition of the tariffs of 1828 and 1832 and argued that the U.S. Constitution gave states the right to block the enforcement of a federal law. In November 1832 South Carolina adopted the Ordinance of Nullification, declaring the tariffs null, void, and nonbinding in the state. U.S. President Andrew Jackson responded in December 1832 by issuing a proclamation that asserted the supremacy of the federal government.
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